'Conflict Mounting' Between Ukraine Army And Zelensky, Lukashenko Claims; President Refutes Statement

The Ukrainian army is allegedly in conflict with its own president as the war against Russia stretches into its seventh month, according to claims made by Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko.

Speaking in an open discussion for Belarusian schoolchildren and university students aired Thursday, Lukashenko suggested the conflict will hit its peak in the near future and would likely see Ukrainians "wiped off the face of the earth."

"There is a conflict mounting between the president and military. Only military servicemen can say boldly: 'We must reach an agreement otherwise Ukraine could be wiped off the face of the earth,'" Lukashenko said, as quoted by Russian-state news agency TASS.

"They are getting slaughtered there. They see no prospects. Take a look at Ukraine's west; the Poles are rubbing their hands, and are already carving up Ukraine's land. The peak is expected very soon."

In this regard, Lukashenko said he believes the war will end "in the near future" with Russia emerging as the victor.

In response to his claims, Mykhailo Podolyak, adviser to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, told Ukrainian-state media Ukrinform that Lukashenko's allegations are fake. He also said the Belarusian president's remarks are part of Russia's efforts to destabilize the political situation in Ukraine.

"Lukashenko has relayed, with great knowledge and in great detail, the media narrative about the alleged powerful conflict between the military and political leadership in Ukraine. With significant military problems becoming more obvious, the Russian special forces will intensify their efforts to destabilize the social and political situation inside the country," Podolyak told Ukrinform, as translated by Ukrainska Pravda.

Lukashenko's and Podolyak's comments come as the Ukrainian military focuses its efforts on reclaiming temporarily occupied territories in the southern Kherson region. Kyiv's army has so far liberated four villages near the city of Kherson and broke through Russian defenses at multiple points of the front line in Kherson Oblast.

The Ukrainian army is also focused on preventing Russian forces from advancing in the eastern Donetsk region, which Moscow hopes to completely retake by Sept. 15, the Deputy Chief of the Main Operational Directorate, Oleksiy Gromov, said Thursday, according to Interfax.